Two federal judges in Iowa have sharply criticized government officials for repeatedly violating the law in immigration cases, with one Iowa ICE enforcement officer held in contempt for “astonishing conduct” and willfully violating a court order. The two cases, each handled by a different federal judge, involve Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials who have moved […]
Clark Kauffman, Iowa Capital Dispatch
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Class-action lawsuit alleges Hy-Vee has failed to pay overtime wages
A proposed class-action lawsuit has been filed against Hy-Vee Inc., alleging the grocery store chain violates federal labor laws by failing to pay overtime for department managers. The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa on behalf of former employee Dawn Nicosia and other Hy-Vee workers. It seeks to […]
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After 23 months in ICE custody, Sudanese man seeks release from Muscatine County Jail
A judge has ordered the federal government to state why it has jailed, for almost two years, an immigration detainee now being held in the Muscatine County Jail. A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa by Mutasim Ibrahim Abdoulrahman Nour, a citizen of Sudan, against U.S. Immigration and Customs […]
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U.S. Attorney continues effort to deport South American asylum seeker in Iowa to Africa (Updated)
Update: On Monday, U.S. District Judge Stephen Locher lifted his order prohibiting ICE from removing José Yugar-Cruz from Iowa. Locher wrote that an April 18 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court left him “little choice” in the case, and ICE can now proceed to deport Yugar-Cruz to the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country in […]
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Judge orders hearing for ICE detainee in Polk County Jail after immigration officials fail to comply with two previous orders for a hearing
For the third time, a judge in Iowa has ordered the federal government to provide a bond hearing for a truck driver detained 10 weeks ago by the Iowa State Patrol and immigration officials. U.S. District Judge Stephen H. Locher ruled this week that the government must provide a hearing at which truck driver Suraj […]
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Truck drivers detained in ‘Operation ICE Wall’ sue the federal government from Iowa jails
Two more individuals detained in Iowa jails by immigration officials are suing the federal government, alleging their rights are being violated. In recent months, Iowa State Patrol troopers and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have worked together in pulling over commercial truck drivers near weigh stations along Interstate 80 as part of what they […]
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ICE accused of maliciously staging a ‘sham’ hearing for Iowa detainee denied bond
The attorney for an immigration detainee held in the Polk County Jail says federal officials maliciously staged a “sham” court hearing orchestrated to keep his client behind bars. The case involves Suraj Vasal, who four years ago came to the United States from India seeking asylum and was then released on his own recognizance. Court […]
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ICE contract with Muscatine County Jail increased funding for detentions by 75%, stipulates ‘no public disclosures’
The Muscatine County Jail was promised a 75 percent increase in potential revenue for holding federal immigration detainees during the first year of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, newly disclosed records show. In March 2025, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement amended the federal government’s longstanding contract with Muscatine County for the detention of individuals […]
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Judge: City’s arrest of critic is ‘quintessential viewpoint discrimination’
Declaring that a citizen was “targeted because he criticized the police department and city leadership,” a federal judge has ruled that the City of Newton violated the rights of a critic by twice having the man arrested at city council meetings. The decision means that Noah Petersen’s lawsuit against the city for violating his constitutional […]
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Judge orders release of ICE detainee in Muscatine County Jail who faces capture, torture if deported
A federal judge has ordered the Muscatine County Jail to release an ICE detainee who had been incarcerated for almost a year after a judge ruled in his favor on an asylum request. Court records indicate Jose Yugar-Cruz, 36, entered the United States in July 2024 after fleeing his home country of Bolivia. In court […]
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Class-action lawsuit seeks to collect unpaid wages for airport restaurant workers in Iowa
A Linn County woman representing workers at airport eateries throughout Iowa has filed a potential class action lawsuit against her employer alleging violations of state and federal wage-and-hour laws. Tara Hill is suing SSP America CID, a limited liability corporation that does business in Iowa as part of SSP America Inc., the American division of […]
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Woodbury County inmate facing a year of detention sues Homeland Security
A Woodbury County jail inmate is suing the federal government, alleging she’s being unlawfully detained by ICE and faces a year of confinement while being denied her due process rights. The case is one of hundreds of similar lawsuits filed around that nation against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and […]
